The Lion King IIII: Return of the Forgotten
by MidnightAuraKitty
Summary: Stiriki cant wait to be the new king of the Pride Lands; until a mysterious lion who claims to be Simba's son takes over Pride Rock. Suddenly Stiriki's great destiny is stripped from him, and the royal family is forced to flee. With the help of a few new allies, will the Pride's former glory be restored?
1. Allegiances

**ALLEGIANCES**

**PrideLands:**

**King-**

Simba: golden lion with red eyes and a brown mane; soon retiring

**Queen:**

Nala: beautiful pale tawny-gold with blue eyes; soon retiring

**Heir:**

Stiriki-golden cub with bi-eyes and reddish tuft

**Hunters:**

Sarafina- pale tawny lioness with blue eyes

Sarabi- tawny lioness with blue eyes

Kiara- pale golden lioness with red eyes- queen after Nala retires and until Stiriki grows up

Kovu- orange lion with black mane- king after Simba retires and until Stiriki grows up

Tojo- erderly dark gold lion with blue eyes

Chumvi- elderly dark brown lion

Leo- elderly golden lion with orange mane

Flare: dark red lion

**Cub-carers and sitters:**

Vitani- pale brown lioness with purple eyes

Timon- sandy meerkat with an orange tuft

Pumba- reddish warthog

Tama- tannish-cream lioness

Kula- caramel brown lioness

**Cubs:**

Frilka- young blue bird

Melka- pale brown she-cub

Kina- pale tawny she-cub

**Others:**

Rafiki- elderly blue-gray baboon; the shaman

Zazu- retired blue bird; Frilka's father

Mazlia- blue bird; Zazu's mate

**Loners:**

Kopa- golden lion with reddish tuft

Jimba- pale dusky brown lioness with amber eyes; Kopa's follower

Azubuike- dusky brown lion with dark brown mane and red eyes; Kopa's follower

Alala- freckled silver-brown lioness; Kopa's follower

Amara: white rogue cub


	2. Chapter 1: This is Pride Rock

**Ok, this is chapter 1, I hope you enjoy it! Simba is still king at the time, by the way, and if you don't know who Kopa is he's Kiara's older brother. **

**Chapter 1- This is Pride Rock**

Stiriki eagerly scrambled to the top of Pride Rock. The hazy sunlight turned his rich pale golden into a shade of yellow. "There you are," his father, Kovu, mumbled as he leaped onto the flat portion of the great Rock. "I was just about to send out search parties for you, I was so worried."

"I'm sorry. Am I really that late? Heh, I was just, um, taking care of some kingly stuff. Yeah." Stiriki was not just about to embarrass himself on what might be the most important day of his life.

"Your not fooling anybody, Stiriki. I heard from Kina you were sleeping in again. What were you doing last night?"

Stiriki looked down at his paws. What would he say he was doing? He just liked to sleep in, but he knew it was not a very royal thing to do. After all, the king of the Savannah must be alert to for danger at all times. His father must have read his thoughts, because he said,"It's okay, Stiriki, but you have to wake at time, and not just at special events. Now, lets begin."

"This is the Pride Lands- the first Pride, a modern version of the land Mohatu once led many long seasons ago. Imagine- he was even older than _Mufasa. _As you know, Stiriki, you will soon rule this all." Stiriki eyes glittered. _All that? _he thought, amazed.

"But what about that cracked desert over in the corners?" he asked, worried. It looked absolutely useless for hunting. "That is the Outlands. Its now apart of the Pridelands, but its not used for anything. Just a refuge for passing loners," Kovu replied. _I cant wait to rule. _

* * *

Kopu blinked open his red-yellow eyes. It was late dawn. He rubbed his eyes and sat up, groggy with sleep. He padded over to a river and lapped at it. It tasted of dirt, but Kopu didn't care. "Finaly,you awake, sleepyhead." He looked up to see Jimba, fellow loner. "If you didnt want to wait long you couldn've left. But everyone knows you just don't have the guts for it!" Kopu retorted. Jimba ignored him and dropped a hare at his paws. "There rare here, so eat it up well!" Kopu snorted playfully and took a few bites. "The rest is your share. You caught it."

"Kopu, Kopu, Kopu, still clinging to Pride customs."

"Well, we're going back there, to claim my leadership."

"So? We all know your scared of Zira."

" _Stop it!"_

"Sorry, Prince."


	3. Chapter 2: The Dare

**Sorry for the long wait peeps!**

**I've already planned out the plotline, so writing these next few chapters'll be a breeze!**

**Also, school is drawing to an end soon, so i'll have tons more time to write for you guys!**

**On with the story!**

* * *

Stiriki stalked his prey carefully, his pale golden belly sliding over the long savanna grass. Ahead of him, on a large gray rock, was a young blue bird- the perfect prey. Wriggling his hindquarters one last time, he launched his pale golden body into the air, claws outstretched. He skidded harshly onto the stone, leaving a crimson red mark. Stiriki blinked. Where was his catch?

"Ha! You say you're going to be king yet you cant even catch a bird?"

Stiriki whipped his head around to see his challenger. "No fair, Frilka! You can fly!" he yowled back at her, repeatedly leaping towards the sky.

Finally Frilka lighted down on a high branch above the cub's head. Stiriki sat down and glanced back at his friend, obviously tired from their little game. "I think I hear my father calling. You know how paranoid he is that i'm gonna get hurt," she said. Stiriki nodded. He could hear her name echoing over the savanna.

"I should be getting back too."

"Ok, bye, Stiriki, see ya tomorrow!"

"Bye!"

Stiriki rested on the warm stone a little bit longer. He glanced up at the horizon, wondering what creatures lay beyond Pride territories. Stiriki shook his head as if clearing it, and started the trek back home.

* * *

"Catch me if you can!"

"No fair, you got a head start!"

Stiriki gleefully glided on front of Kina and her bestie, Melka. His eyes-both the red one and the blue- gleamed with joy as Melka tripped over the rocks he placed behind him in her lane.

Finally the prince skidded to a halt. "Ha! I won!" he boasted.

"Oh, don't be such a peacock!" Kina said from behind him as she reached the finish line where Stiriki was. Melka came huffing and panting last. "Hey, Melka, you lost and I won so I get to _dare _you, just like we agreed," Stiriki said, leaning in towards her until their noses touched. Melka's lavender eyes flashed angrily.

"Well, Mama won't approve of anything dangerous anymore, so hah!" she said, raising an eyebrow threateningly.

"Oh, your not gonna snitch to Vitani again, are you, now are you, _snitch!?" _growled the future king. Melka took a step back, though defiance still glowed in her eyes. "I dare you to go to the elephant graveyard and bury an antelope horn." Fear flashed in the young lioness's eyes, yet she couldn't back down from the challenge.

* * *

**Sorry for the short chapter, I just feel I should leave Melka's adventure for the next one. I can't really write on school days so much and thats another reason why. **

**The dare is a REALLY important part of the story. Melka was created for this purpose alone so if you feel her personality is weak it's because of that. **

**Don't forget to leave a review of favorite! They are deeply appreciated. **


	4. Chapter 3: Melka

Melka stood at the edge of the graveyard, a horn clutched tightly in her jaws. Sweat beads dropped onto her face. Stiriki snickered behind her, only to be silenced by Kina's sharp jab to the side.

Stiriki was bored out of his mind. Why can't the idiot cub do it yet?

"OK, do it already! We're waiting here!" he screeched at Melka. As if she'd took a sharp jab to the behind Melka shot across the graveyard. Stiriki and Kina turned back to the road ahead of them. "Shouldn't we wait and see, for proof?" Kina asked. As much as he wanted to see Melka fail he wanted to break his own record of most grubs eaten. He had no idea why, but Grandpa Simba kept saying grubs are healthy.

* * *

Melka crept through the grey, drab path. Fear bubbled up in her like a volcano about to explode.

A melancholy feeling hung high in the air. Bones upon bones of long gone creatures piled up into the air, and the oxygen was musky.

Finally Melka sat down, right in the middle of the road. She began digging, and fit the horn right in the middle of it.

"Hey! Get off our land!" Three hyenas crept towards her. She began to dash away, panting, sweating, trying anything to get away from those tyrants. She shut her eyes in fear.

She felt she had been running for hours, though she knew if that was so in this heat she'd collapse. Finally she began to slow down. A realization ran through Melka's mind- she was in the Outlands- and at the very end of it too. She glanced around one more time to get used to her surroundings. What direction is home again? West? East? She sighed heavily and just moved forward.

Melka spotted movement ahead of her. _Were_ the hyenas back? She lifted her nose to the air. All she could smell was the arid stench of the Outlands and lion. She supposed whoever she found could get her back home.

She rolled in closer to the animals ahead. She could see two figures now, one a reddish-maned lion and a slim lioness. "Um, hello?" she asked meekly. The two lions turned around. The red-maned lion looked somehow familiar. _Stiriki! _Of course. This was a relative of Stiriki.

"Why, hello there." The words cut into her thoughts.

Melka's curiosity suddenly took hold of her. "A-are you from Pridelands?" Hastily she added,"I mean, I don't know how to get back home." The pale brown lioness and the lion exchanged glances, then returned their gazes to Melka. He nodded.

"Will you take me! I'm not good at directions."

"I-I just can't."

"He's afraid Zira will get him." It was the first time the lioness spoke, and when she did, it had a mocking tone. Melka's face lightened up. "But Zira's long dead! So you can take me, right?!"

The lion's eye's flashed with joy for a split second.

"_Yes_, yes I can."

* * *

**YAY! It's finally finished! I made it extra long for you guys! **

**I know it seems like a happy reunion but Kopa's gonna start to be annoying later on. **

**This is the only reason Melka is created, if you want her to die now or get lost or something you can always review and tell me your opinion!**

** ~Midnight**


	5. Sorry :(

**Sorry that i haven't uploaded chapters in such a long time! Its just that I cant get online much and all these stuff always get in the way of writing. I have a life too. The next chapter may not be up for a few weeks or so.**

**-Midnight**


End file.
